Fish mint, also known as chameleon plant, is grown for cooking — but it's difficult to get rid of. Here's what an expert says.
Keep Invasive Fish Mint (Chameleon Plant) Out of Your Yard
Published on Apr. 25, 2025
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What Is a Fish Mint/Chameleon Plant?
If you see a leafy green plant in your garden with white flowers that also has a notable scent, there’s a good chance you have fish mint — and a good chance you’re in for a battle. Fish mint, also known as chameleon plant, fish leaf, or by its scientific name, Houttuynia cordata, is extremely invasive.
This plant is used in Vietnamese cooking and is native to Asia. Some use it in seasoning meats or adding flavor to soups or stir-fry dishes.
How to Get Rid of Fish Mint Plants
Despite the plant’s common name, it isn’t actually a member of the mint family. Once it’s established in a garden it can often prove extremely difficult to eradicate.
“Not planting invasive plants or those suspected of being invasive is the best control option,” gardening expert Melinda Myers says. She notes that fish mint appears to spread by rhizomes, rather than seeds, meaning that it puts out root-like stems beneath the ground. Pulling up the plants is useless unless you’re able to get the full root, too, as the invasive can bounce back from segments of rhizomes left behind.
“Once you have the problem, persistence is key to eliminating it, as with other invasive plants,” Melinda says. Weed killers aren’t always effective, and desirable plants often end up harmed when their roots absorb weed-killer chemicals from the soil.
Melinda recommends a tactic from Purdue University — using a broad or garden fork to get rid of as much of the aboveground plants as well as the rhizomes as you can. Then, she says, you can landscape-edge the garden bed and smother with black landscape fabric for two seasons.
Protect Desirable Plants
Because this tactic will kill any plant in the garden, not just the fish mint, Melinda strongly recommends moving desirable plants to pots and monitoring for any sign of the invasive. “Any piece of the rhizome can start a new plant,” she says. “The last thing you’d want to do is reintroduce the problem plant in a treated or new garden bed.”
Consider Alternatives to Fish Mint
Melinda advises extreme caution for those who might consider growing fish mint to use in cooking. While it can be grown in containers, Melinda says those containers should not be in contact with the soil in any way and any flowers on the plants should be removed before they set seed.
Overall, she invites gardeners to consider alternative herbs: “Are there other less risky options to achieve the desired benefits? Not only better for the environment, but less work for you?” she says.
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About the Expert
Melinda Myers is the official gardening expert for Birds & Blooms. She is a TV/radio host, author and columnist who has written more than 20 gardening books. Melinda earned a master’s degree in horticulture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
